LeRoy Lindahl

Even as a young boy, LeRoy Lindahl loved the wilderness. As he climbed hills and played in the woods, he had no idea that one day he would be soaring in airplanes and dodging Indian arrows in the jungles of Bolivia.

LeRoy was born June 21, 1924, in Waukesha, Wisconsin. The Lindahl family never missed a week of church, but LeRoy simply accepted the family faith without taking it to heart. Upon graduating from high school, he enrolled in Sparta Business College. He worked a short while in the civil service and enlisted in the Navy as an aviation cadet during World War II. Although LeRoy was far from God at this time, God was not far from him, for He was using these experiences as preparation for missions work in Bolivia.

After returning from military service, LeRoy attended the Youth Conference of 1947 at Taylor University (Indiana). That weekend, LeRoy accepted Christ and immediately felt called to the mission field. He attended Taylor University and began to feel as if it would be enough for him to simply support missionaries while remaining in the United States.

At Taylor, he fell in love with Mary June Weber, a girl from back home, whom he married in 1948. During his last year at Taylor, LeRoy finally decided he would go wherever God sent him. He attended Western Evangelical Seminary and, after hearing Jonathon Tamplin speak on missionary work in Bolivia, felt a distinct call to Bolivia. LeRoy and Mary obeyed God by applying to become missionaries with World Gospel Mission.

In 1972, LeRoy became the director of the Bolivia Field and taught at Wesley Seminary and Berea Bible Institute. Mary served in women’s ministries, took care of the guesthouse, and taught at Berea High School. In 1980, they left Bolivia to pastor the Community House of God, a Spanish-speaking ministry in Los Angeles, California. The Lindahls retired from WGM in June 1986 and moved to Mary’s family home in Wisconsin. They managed the farm and LeRoy traveled around to preach.

Mary went to be with the Lord on September 5, 1999, at the age of 79. LeRoy returned to Bolivia in 2002 to live with family.

Read more about LeRoy's story here.